C50: Apologize
Yan Yu stood up abruptly and said sternly: “Somebody!”
The servant maid hurriedly ran in. When she saw that his expression was unpleasant and thought that she had made some mistake, she knelt in front of him in panic and asked, “Your Highness, do you have any instructions?”
He asked, “Where is the Princess?”
“Where is she?”
The servant maid ventured to look at the bed. Seeing that Xie Zhen was not in there, she suddenly did a quick double take what was going on. She said with lingering fear, “Your Highness, the Empress said you would come back late. She had a light sleep at night, so she rested in the side room first.”
Xie Zhen was too tired today to wait long enough to go to bed, but she was angry with him and did not intend to share the bed with him.
Anyway, they had already discussed this beforehand. After marriage, they would split the beds and sleep in the same room.
When Yan Yu found out, his expression eased up a lot. He said to the servant maid, “You may leave.”
The servant maid responded with a “yes” and retreated quietly.
There was only one lamp left in the room, and the candlelight flickered. It was estimated that it wouldn’t last long.
Yan Yu sat on the bed for a moment, then suddenly stood up. He tried to knock on the door of the side room, but before he could raise his hand, he let his hand fall.
He repeated it three or four times, so that he began to look down on himself.
She was in there. Why would he not dare to go in?
Aren’t they getting married? Shouldn’t they be sleeping in the same bed as a matter of course?
But before the marriage, he had promised not to touch her.
Yan Yu struggled for a long time before lying back on his bed. He gazed at the bright red embroidered gold curtain above his head and recalled that it was his wedding night. For some reason, he suddenly felt a little desolate.
He jumped up, and no longer cared about the promise, he strode to the door of the side room and the inner room, lightly pushing with his hand.
The door was not open.
He frowned and pushed again, but still didn’t open it.
Didn’t he tell the steward not to put the bolt on?
In fact, the steward did not have a bolt on, but when Xie Zhen came in, she found the door unlatched, so in case someone had evil designs, she ordered Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan to bring the table and put it against the door.
He stood in the doorway for a moment, and then called out, “Xie Zhen?”
There was no response, and Xie Zhen went to bed early.
Since he had made up his mind, he would not give up so easily. With a heavy push, the gate was pushed open a wide crack.
“What’s that?” Xie Zhen was wakened by the noise. She asked Shuang Yu, who was sitting on the edge of Xie Zhen’s bed. “What’s that?”
Shuang Yu stared at Yan Yu, who was crawling in through the crack in the door, dumbfounded. She stammered, “It’s, it’s…”
Yan Yu gave her a sidelong glance. She did not dare to continue.
Xie Zhen thought it was nothing, so rolled over and went back to sleep. Before she went to sleep, she said, “Remember to keep your eyes on the table.”
At the time she said this, Yan Yu was already by the bed.
It was a cool autumn night, and she was wearing a flowered silk blouse and a thin mattress.
It was most likely due to her dishonest sleeping state. Her collar was slightly open, revealing her red embroidered undergarment. Moonlight spilled in from outside the window and fell on her body, making her look even more delicate and soft.
Yan Yu watched. He leaned over her and wrapped her in his arms.
Shuang Yu stood to the side, stunned, and whispered, “Your Highness …”
Yan Yu tilted his head and said coldly, “Get out.”
Master’s orders could not be disobeyed, but Shuang Yu was worried that he would be unfavorable to Xie Zhen, so she hesitated for a moment. “The girl is sleeping…”
Yan Yu didn’t seem to hear her. “I told you to go out.”
His tone was inconsequential.
Shuang Yu scowled miserably as she left the side room. In her heart, she prayed that the Bodhisattva would protect the girl and His Highness from harm.
After Shuang Yu left, only Yan Yu and Xie Zhen were left in the room.
Xie Zhen slept fitfully, so that Yan Yu only dared to hold on to her and didn’t do anything superfluous.
He studied her face in silence, and when she slept, she was more like when she was a child.
Her face and nose were exactly the same. They were still small and delicate, and even her body didn’t seem to have grown much.
His gaze descended down to the part. It seemed she had grown up …
He wanted to talk to her, but he didn’t know how to, so he watched for a good half an hour.
Finally Xie Zhen a grunt and no pressure on the back of his hand, he eased out and stood at the edge of the bed and scratched her nose before he left.
This time, he laid back on the bed in the inner room. Although he still felt a little regretful, he felt more at ease than before.
He closed his eyes and slept through the night.
When he opened his eyes, he was more sane than he had been last night.
He sat up, feeling his throat burning with thirst, and was about to call servant maids to serve him tea, when he caught sight of Xie Zhen in front of the dressing mirror, holding a candlestick in her hand. At the end of the candlestick was the gold thorn of a burnt candle, and she didn’t even blink as she tried to stab herself in the wrist!
Yan Yu thought she was going to kill herself, so he didn’t even bother to put on his shoes. He quickly grabbed the candlestick and gasped, “What are you doing?”
Due to his anxiousness, his voice was a little strict.
Xie Zhen had just woken up, too, and his black hair was pulled back to cover most of her face, which was only the size of a palm.
She raised her head to look at him, her big watery eyes filled with calmness. “Mother said that on the first day of marriage, I would bring a handkerchief with blood into the palace. I didn’t bleed, so I wanted to use this to cut my wrist. Two drops of blood.”
She was very afraid of pain, and before she could decide where to cut, he had already rushed over like a madman.
She’d thought a lot last night, and since he didn’t like her, they’d just be a nice couple.
She didn’t expect anything from him, so she wouldn’t embarrass herself in the future.
So she hadn’t thought to count on him about cutting her wrist.
Yan Yu’s complexion changed from black to blue, then from blue to white. He finally recovered from the fright earlier, and his complexion returned to normal.
He picked up the candlestick and expressionlessly drew a cut on his arm. Immediately, beads of blood began to appear.
With his other hand, he grabbed Xie Zhen’s handkerchief from her, put it over his arm, wiped it a couple of times, and handed it back to her. “Is that all right?”
But Xie Zhen ignored him, stood up and walked inside. “We will enter the palace later, you can hand it over to the people around the empress.”
Yan Yu stood at the same spot with the handkerchief in his hand, slightly frowning.
For some reason, there seemed to be something wrong.
On their first day of marriage, they had to pay their respects to the emperor and the empress. Considering they were newlywed, Emperor Yuan Hui allowed them to go an hour later.
Xie Zhen changed into a pinkish shirt and a white dress embroidered with flowery and bird. It was perfect sunny today, and it was warm, making one easily get refreshed.
She was sitting in front of a grapevine mirror, with Shuang Yu brushing her hair behind her. She looked at herself in the mirror and out of the corner of her eye she saw Yan Yu standing by the window, staring at her back.
Xie Zhen pursed her pink lips and looked away, ignoring him.
Shuang Yu made her a lily bun hairstyle, a headwear with a pair of golden silk leaf on it, a drop of ruby between the forehead pendants. In the end, she looked beautiful and peerless.
She got up and walked out of the inner room. Without asking whether Yan Yu had been ready, she asked the servant maids to take her to wait in the carriage outside the door.
Yan Yu followed her, finally unable to bear it any longer, “Didn’t you see me?”
“Yes,” Xie Zhen said, nodding slightly as she walked in the porch.
And then there was nothing more to say.
Yan Yu’s breath was caught in his throat, making him feel uncomfortable, yet he did not know where to vent it.
He watched her walk away without waiting for him. His jaw tightened as he silently watched her back. He felt as if he had been abandoned.
Wu Ze, his personal attendant, came from the front yard and stopped in front of him respectfully, “Your Highness, the carriage is ready. Are we going now?”
He pursed his lips and walked out. “Let’s go.”
Wu Ze asked again, “Are you riding or taking a carriage?”
Normally, Yan Yu was used to riding on horseback when he went out of the palace, and Wu Ze was the only one who would ask this kind of question.
Without thinking, Yan Yu answered, “taking the carriage.”
As Yan Yu spoke, he had already arrived at the door. There was a boxwood carriage parked outside the door, and there was no one around.
He strode forward and stepped on the shafts of the carriage. He lifted the curtain and said to the servant maids, “There is no need for any servants to accompany to enter the palace. All of you, leave.”
Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan looked at each other, then at Yan Yu and then at Xie Zhen.
The young couple was in an awkward situation. It was really difficult for them servant maids.
Finally, the two of them bowed and said to Xie Zhen, “Miss, the servant has to leave…”
Xie Zhen looked at Yan Yu without saying anything, and looked away, then said gently, “just leave.”
After the servant maids left, Yan Yu got in from outside.
He didn’t do anything but sit next to Xie Zhen.
The carriage was not small, but he sat down and took up quite a bit of space, which made her side seem a bit crowded.
Xie Zhen moved aside and he did the same.
In the end, Xie Zhen was forced into a corner, one side was to the side of the car and the other side to him.
She tilted her head to look at him, her dark eyes expressionless, her pink lips slightly parted. “Why are you following me?”
It’s not like that.
She didn’t do that to him.
When she had faced him before, she had been innocent and coquettish, with a sweet smile and a soft voice.
And not so cold and calm as she was now.
She was alright yesterday, so why was she different today?
He felt a little uneasy and wanted to ask her what was going on, but the words that came out of his mouth became: “After entering the palace, there will always be people watching. Sitting close to you will not arouse anyone’s suspicions.”
Xie Zhen believed it and ignored him.
She lowered her head and played with the flower and bird patterns on her skirt. What was so beautiful about the patterns that she was so entranced by it?
Yan Yu looked down at her face. Her skin was pale white, her eyebrows were delicate, and her lips were delicate. Each of them was very alluring.
Her long eyelashes quivered, and he wanted to reach out and touch them, but his hands tightened on his knees and did not.
He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes in frustration. “Did you sleep well last night?”
Xie Zhen said, “very well.”
He asked again, “How long did you wait last night?”
“Not long,” she said.
“…”
“When do you want to return to Duke Dingguo’s Mansion?”
She thought for a moment. “Tomorrow?”
Yan Yu paused, “Alright.”
Then silence again.
After a long time, when the carriage was far away, he asked, “Don’t you have anything to say to me?”
She said, “No.”
“…”
Yan Yu’s face darkened. He closed his eyes and went to sleep, not saying another word.
The carriage soon arrived at the entrance of the palace. The carriage did not stop until it reached the Zhaoyang Palace.
A palace maidservant welcomed them outside the hall. After inviting them out of the carriage, she led them into the hall.
In the end of the long stairs, the empress was already waiting for the two of them in the main hall.
The empress felt weak and was somewhat tired after a while. Seeing the two of them come over, she forced a smile and said, “Seems like you’ve finally come. Quick, take a seat.”
Yan Yu’s birth mother died early, so Xie Zhen should serve tea to her.
In the end, the two of them didn’t sit down. Later, a palace maidservant served a bowl of hot tea, Xie Zhen took the bowl, and handed it to Empress Wang . “Esteemed Empress, please have some tea.”
Empress Wang took it, took a sip, and had her gift prepared for Xie Zhen brought up.
The palace maidservant handed over a box of red sandalwood carvings. She opened it and handed it to Xie Zhen. Inside was a pair of red jade bangles. They were crystal clear and flawless.
Xie Zhen knelt down and paid respects. After all, she was the golden branch and jade leaf of Duke Dingguo’s Mansion. Her gesture was not only a gesture of favor, but also one that was perfectly done, giving people a sense of comfort in their hearts.
Empress Wang told her to get up, leaving the two of them to talk for a while.
However, the empress found it difficult to recover from the discomfort. She had no choice but to let the two of them leave first. Then, she returned to her room to rest for a while.
Yan Yu and Xie Zhen walked out of Zhaoyang Palace one after the other, neither paying attention to each other.
Not long after, a person appeared in front of them. He wore a purplish red persimmon pattern embroidered robe, and his head was tall and his steps were wide. His disposition was extraordinary.
He was followed by two attendants, who were coming towards him.
Xie Zhen noticed Yan Yu slight stiffening in the air.
When he called out “second brother”, she realized that he was the crown prince.
Her heart tightened, but her face remained calm. She lowered her eyes and did not take another look. She obediently followed, “Second Brother.”
When Yan Tao heard that Empress Wang was in a bad situation, he rushed over very early in the morning. When he saw the two of them, he still put on a graceful manner, “Are you guys here to serve tea with mother?”
Yan Yu straightened up and blocked Xie Zhen behind him. “Yes.”
Yan Tao smiled and looked at the girl with her head above his back. Without saying anything, he patted his shoulder meaningfully and walked past her. “I will go visit mother.”
After the Crown Prince had left, Yan Yu directly held Xie Zhen’s hand and strode into the royal study, “You are walking too slowly. Follow me.”
Xie Zhen was suddenly grabbed by him, stumbled and tried to get away from him. ” I don’t need you to take me,” she said.
He squeezed her hand and said nothing. “You do.”
“No,” she said.
Hearing their conversation, the palace maidservant at the front couldn’t help but curl the corners of her mouth and snicker.
Yan Yu held it in for a long time. He felt a lump of foul air in his heart, and said with a strange tone: “When we were young, didn’t you want to hold my hand?”
Xie Zhen looked at him as if he were a madman, and probably thought he was mentally ill. “That was a long time ago.”
“I don’t want to hold hands with you now. ”
His thin lips drew into a line as he stared straight ahead. “Why?”
She tried two times, puffed up her cheeks. “There’s no reason,I just don’t want to.”
After saying that, she successfully broke away from his control and continued to follow him at a moderate pace.
The palm suddenly became empty, Yan Yu grasped his hand into a fist, thinking tha woman was too strange. Was every woman as changeable as Xie Zhen?
Just like that, they arrived at the imperial study, where the Emperor Yuan Hui was approving the files. After Eunuch Yu went in to pass the information around, he let them in.
The emperor had never met Xie Zhen before. Today was the first time they’d met, and after meeting, he seemed to know why his two sons were arguing over her.
She was indeed a rare beauty.
In the entire capital, there was no one who could be as pretty as her.
Xie Zhen served tea to him. “Good, good,” he said, with a satisfied smile. “Good.”
Emperor Yuan Hui was in a good mood. He rewarded her with a few items, among which was a luminous pearl the size of a palm.
Xie Zhen was obviously interested in it, and she toyed with it all the way back, holding it in her hands to see if it was really glowing, and then she looked at it in the sun, and she didn’t have time to think about Yan Yu.
Therefore, on the way back, Yan Yu’s face was overcast.
He asked, “Is it that funny?”
“Do you want more?”
She said no, “One is fine.”
The carriage drove all the way back to the sixth prince’s mansion on Beining Street. As soon as it came to a stop, Xie Zhen walked down, holding onto her skirt. She didn’t wait for him.
Shuang Yan and Shuang Yu were already waiting at the door. She stepped forward and followed them back into the mansion.
Yan Yu was left outside the door, staring at her back.
Steward Zhao ordered the coachman to stop the carriage in the backyard and turn to the front. When he saw the young couple, he couldn’t help but remind him, “Your Highness, did you and the empress have a conflict on the road?”
“Why does the empress seem angry?”
Yan Yu turned to look at him and realized something, “You said she’s angry?”
Wasn’t this obvious?
The steward seemed somewhat powerless. “Empress didn’t seem to smile all day, didn’t you notice?”
As if someone had suddenly woken him up, he threw down the steward and strode into the mansion.
His legs were long and wide, and Xie Zhen walked slowly, so it wasn’t long before he caught up with her under the Gallery veranda.
He caught her wrist breathlessly, met her quizzical eyes, and swallowed nervously. “You.”
“Are angry?”
Xie Zhen looked at him in silence and did not answer.
He asked again, “Why are you angry?”
“Don’t touch me,” she said childishly. “You said you wouldn’t touch me.”
He choked, unable to refute.
He stood in front of her in a huff, blocking her way. “Xie Zhen, talk to me!”
The servant maids behind him were stunned. They had never seen the sixth prince in such a hurry.
Xie Zhen tilted her head, blinked and stared at him. ” Aren’t you angry if I left you alone in the wagon?”
His eyes flickered, but he didn’t deny it.
She asked, “Are you angry that I went out in the morning and left you alone?”
He finally nodded.
Of course he was. Did she think he didn’t exist?
Xie Zhen looked at him, and asked, “Then why can’t I get angry when you left me alone in the bridal chamber last night?”
Then, without waiting for a response, she walked around him.
Yan Yu was enlightened and his heart was beating fast.
He came to know why she had ignored him, why she had not smiled at him, and he came to know where he was wrong.
In fact, he hadn’t left her behind on purpose last night. With so many people watching and she was so beautiful, he was afraid that if he continued to look at her, he would do something that would cause him to lose his composure.
With an evasive attitude, he turned around and left, but he did not consider her feelings.
Had she been wronged by the presence of so many people?
After thinking about it, he immediately threw away his dignity and wanted to chase after her and explain things to her.
But the porch was empty, and she had been far away.
He chased her all the way to the main yard, where she had gone, and, knowing she was in the room, went in quickly.
Xie Zhen was sitting in front of the dressing table, arranging the things the empress and His Majesty had given him.
Just as she was about to stand up, she looked up from the copper mirror and saw Yan Yu behind her.
She didn’t know how long he stood there, but when he saw that she had noticed, he realized that his voice was hoarse and heavy. “Don’t be angry.”
Xie Zhen blinked, “Why should I do what you want?”
He looked out of the window at the withered leaves of the tree. He was not used to apologizing to others, so he spoke in a hoarse voice, “Last night, it was I …”
Halfway through his words, he remained silent for a long time.
Xie Zhen pursed her lips.
Seeing her leaving again, he was anxious to get in front of her and look her in the eye — “It’s my fault,” he said.
When he finished speaking, he blushed deeply.
